Are we to repent for our ancestors past sins?

[Esaias]

Originally Posted by n david

What I'm arguing against is your comment that if we don't repent for our ancestor's sins that somehow we're "implicated" in their sin.

I don't think the Scriptures say we're "implicated in their sin" if we don't repent of their sin. Whatever that even means (who knows what SJWs mean anyway).

I completely disagree. There is no biblical or spiritual requirement or benefit to do this, other than to make the person doing it feel better about themselves. It's vanity. It's self-serving. It's taking liberal politics (reparations, apologies for ancestral wrongs, etc) and trying to apply it to christian living.

But I do disagree that confessing the sins of your people as in Daniel 9 and the numerous other passages I quoted on page 1 somehow means one is vain and self-serving. But then again, I do not at all agree with our resident SJW's take on this or anything else. So there's that.

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by Esaias

I don't think the Scriptures say we're "implicated in their sin" if we don't repent of their sin. Whatever that even means (who knows what SJWs mean anyway).

Strong's Concordance

metanoia: change of mind, repentance
Original Word: μετάνοια, ας, ἡ
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: metanoia
Phonetic Spelling: (met-an'-oy-ah)
Short Definition: repentance, a change of mind
Definition: repentance, a change of mind, change in the inner man.

To "repent" means to change one's "stinkin' thinkin'" regarding a thing, namely sin and one's errant concepts of God in a Gospel context. If one changes their mind concerning a thing, such as sin, it will effect how they live in relation to that thing.

Repentance is a change in the disposition of one's mind. Change the mind, change the person.

[berkeley]

Originally Posted by Aquila

Strong's Concordance

metanoia: change of mind, repentance
Original Word: μετάνοια, ας, ἡ
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: metanoia
Phonetic Spelling: (met-an'-oy-ah)
Short Definition: repentance, a change of mind
Definition: repentance, a change of mind, change in the inner man.

To "repent" means to change one's "stinkin' thinkin'" regarding a thing, namely sin and one's errant concepts of God in a Gospel context. If one changes their mind concerning a thing, such as sin, it will effect how they live in relation to that thing.

Repentance is a change in the disposition of one's mind. Change the mind, change the person.

So why is the white guy whose grand dad was in the Klan repenting of a mindset he doesn’t have?

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by berkeley

So why is the white guy whose grand dad was in the Klan repenting of a mindset he doesn’t have?

He's repenting of the complacent mindset towards the sins of his ancestors, especially once he was made aware of them, and the ripple effects that are being felt in the lives of people today.

While my story was a really bigly exaggerated example, even if all he did was dedicate himself to making sure that his kids knew the terrible truth about their fathers, and had them pray with him to denounce such hatred, and repent of any and all racial hatred in their lives, committing themselves to loving their neighbors unconditionally, he will have repented of the evil of his ancestors, and led his family away from the sin.

Please understand, this is only necessary whenever it may apply. You and me might not have a clue as to what our ancestors have done. And even if we did, maybe their sin has passed with them, leaving next to no effects on the present. We wouldn't have to deal with such sin.

My dad was a Vietnam Vet. The most I've done is give a financial contribution to missionaries serving in Vietnam. But when I was younger, a part of me wanted to take part in a missions trip to serve the very people my father was dedicated to killing. He was artillery, serving as part of a crew operating the Howitzer 155 mm. He helped turn entire villages into craters... there is no telling how many non-combatant civilians he killed.

As a believer, I kinda carry that with me.